What did I just see?

A neat row of lights moving in a line is almost always a Starlink satellite train — dozens of satellites deployed together, brightest in the first days after launch. This tool checks for recent Starlink launches from your location.

A steady, bright 'star' that glides across the sky in a few minutes without flashing is the International Space Station or another large satellite catching sunlight. If it flashes or has coloured lights, it's an aircraft.

A brilliant, steady point of light low in the west after sunset or east before dawn is usually the planet Venus; a bright one higher up is often Jupiter. This tool tells you which planets are up from your location right now.